Yakuza
David Kono }} "We live this, we breathe this, our kids grow up with this. - and because of that, we don't give up. We're gonna win!" - David Kono, Yakuza descendant/historian The Yakuza, cruel warlords of Japan's underworld; The Mafia, deadly enforcers on the mean streets of New York. Stats *Year - 1947 *Height - 5' 6" *Weight - 150 lbs *Armor - none *Gear - 10 lbs *Symbol -Yakuza Dragon Tattoo History Japan has always had Pirates or criminals, some underground groups founded by ninjas. The 'Yakuza' describes the gangs formed in the modern or industrial era. This included gamblers who played the game oichokabu. The game oichokabu introduced the name Yakuza; the cards 8, 9, and 3 (Ya, Ku and Za) was the worst possible hand to play in the game. The Yakuza was ironically open with its interactions within their Japanese communities; creating business signs, public offices and business cards to directly confirm their identity. This was primarily because being a member wasn't automatically a crime; more importantly, the Yakuza had significant influence within the Japanese government. This was primarily because the Yakuza displayed their organizations and operations as crime-fighters who hunted down supposedly more violent and more unstable criminals (some police forces considered that organized crime was better than disorganized crime and that the Yakuza was a necessary-evil). Yakuza also made certain that Pro-Yakuza politicians would gain power while Anti-Yakuza politicians would be targeted. The modern day Yakuza grew into power in post-WW2 Japan, which was seriously damaged in the war. Taking advantage of the weakened nation, the Yakuza underground exploded. The Yakuza exist today, though are not unified under a single gang- instead multiple Yakuza gangs fight against each other in Japan. They can be identified by Yakuza tattoos, which are outlawed in public, and sometimes with removed fingers or fake fingers on their hands. Surprisingly Japan has very few murders today and is relatively one of the safest nations today, despite such large numbers of Yakuza. The Yakuza however are forced to keep their operations secretive (hence the ban on displaying Yakuza tatoos) as both politicians and police now openly crack down on Yakuza when legally able. News media renamed the Yakuza as 'Violent Groups' to further denounce them. The mayor of Nagasaki, Iccho Itoh, was assassinated by the Yamaguchi-gumi Yakuza in 2007, despite the rumor that this gang was relatively unprovoked for such a murder. The Yamaguchi are estimated to have an $80 billion annual income. Weapons *The nunchaku was tested against the baseball bat. The bat broke a pig's spine at over 100 mph. The Nunchaku was tested on a gel head and managed to crack its skull in three hits. Ferrante tested the bat on the same torso and caused more damage in one swing. This gave the bat the advantage. *The Walther P38 was tested against the sawed-off shotgun. The P38 proved to have deadly accuracy, managing to hit a synthetic skull (filled with brains) through the left eye socket. The Sawed-off Shotgun was tested on a dummy, hitting its target in the torso and cheek. The shotgun was given the advantage due to its superior killing power. *The Tommy gun and Sten were both tested against single and multiple targets. The Tommy gun was given the advantage due to its stronger caliber, faster rate of fire, and larger magazine. *The ice pick was tested against the sai. The ice pick was able to stab a gel torso in the neck and through its head. The sai was tested on a blood-filled foam torso, and was able to put multiple stab wounds in it. The sai was given the advantage due to its versatility. The ice pick was included as a weapon only because it was commonplace; the sai, however, was actually designed for use as a weapon. *The ceramic grenade was tested against the Molotov cocktail. The ceramic grenade was able to take out three targets: one was confused, one was disoriented, and the other was dead. The Molotov cocktail was tested on two dummies in a car. When thrown, it put the car in a "mini-firestorm" and slowly burned the dummies. The ceramic grenade was given the advantage due to its ability to put its victims in a completely defenseless state, whereas the Molotov's victims weren't immediately incapacitated. Battle Mafia Yakuza The battle begins with a group of five Yakuza members entering a hotel. A nearby man and his wife checking into the hotel look on with nervousness as they see five Mafia members turn the corner and run into the Yakuza. Both gangs stare each other down until one Mafia gangster pulls out a Molotov Cocktail. Another one takes out a lighter and lights the rag on the bottle. One of the Yakuza gangsters realizes that they're preparing a bomb, and alerts his fellow teammates. A Yakuza member fires his British Sten machine gun, killing the man's wife as well as the Mafia gangster with the Molotov. He falls to the floor and drops the Molotov, rendering it useless. The Mafia boss pulls out his Sawed-Off Shotgun and aims at the Yakuza boss, who draws his Walther P38 and uses it to take the husband hostage and use him as a shield. The Mafia boss changes his mind and instead shoots the Yakuza member with the British Sten, throwing him behind a couch and killing him. The Mafia and Yakuza members scatter out in different directions, with one of the Mafia members jumping behind the check-in counter. Another Mafia thug fires his Tommy Gun and kills a Yakuza member and the man the Yakuza boss was using as cover. Another Yakuza member lights a Ceramic Grenade and throws it. It lands behind the check-in counter and explodes, killing the Mafia gangster behind it. At this point, the Mafia has already retreated to different parts of the hotel, so the remaining Yakuza members go further into the hotel to hunt them down. The Yakuza boss finds a Mafia member trying to escape in an elevator. He runs and gets caught in the elevator's doors. The Mafia man inside desperately tries to load ammo into his gun, but the Yakuza boss manages to get inside the elevator first. He grabs the Mafia man and shoves him into a wall, forcing them both to drop their guns. The Mafia member pulls out a switchblade knife and the Yakuza boss draws his two Sai. The Mafia member tries to stab the Yakuza boss, but is countered with a swift punch to the side. The Yakuza boss swings his Sai and slashes the Mafia member's face. The Mafia member tries to get a blow with his knife, but the Yakuza boss grabs him and stabs him in the stomach. The Mafia thug falls to the floor, allowing the Yakuza boss to grab his Walther. He fires two bullets into the Mafia man just as the elevator doors open. He steps out, looking for any more Mafia members. Meanwhile, the Mafia boss and his last henchman make their way down a flight of stairs. The henchman tells his boss to continue on, and then kills one of the oncoming Yakuza members with his Tommy Gun. However, another Yakuza gangster follows up and kills the Mafia thug with his Walther P38 and then continues down the stairs. In the basement, the Mafia boss hides behind a locker door and attempts to reload his shotgun. However, he is so nervous that he accidentally drops the bullet. Just as he is about to go to pick it up, he hears the Yakuza thug enter the room. As the Yakuza man is examining the lockers, the Mafia boss finds a Bat in the locker he is hiding in. Just as the Mafia boss is about to be caught, he jumps out and hits the gun out of the Yakuza member's hands and then hits him in the stomach with the Bat. The Yakuza man pulls out his Nunchucks and begins to show off in an attempt to scare the Mafia boss. However, this only angers him as he tries to furiously swing with the bat. The Yakuza man swings with his nunchucks, but the Mafia boss ducks and strikes him in his leg. The Yakuza man flinches and is then hit in the head. He falls to the ground, allowing the Mafia boss to continuously beat him to death with the Bat. After retrieving and reloading his shotgun, the Mafia boss makes his way to the boiler room. As he enters, the Yakuza boss jumps out and tries to shoot him with his Walther P38. The Mafia boss fires back with his shotgun, but neither one manages to hit the other. Eventually, the Mafia boss runs out of ammo again and tries to reload. However, the Yakuza boss catches this and puts the gun to his head. He pulls the trigger, only to find that his gun is out of ammo as well. The Mafia boss swings his shotgun and hits the Yakuza boss in the stomach. The Mafia boss discards his gun in favor of his switchblade, while the Yakuza boss pulls out his Sai again. The two begin to vigorously swing at each other, keeping their distance to avoid getting hit by the other's weapon. The Yakuza boss kicks the Mafia boss into a boiler and charges at him, but the Mafia boss kicks back and pushes him away. The two recover and briefly glare each other down before they begin to fight again. Eventually, the Mafia boss shoves the Yakuza boss into the boiler and tries to stab him. The Yakuza boss jumps out of the way, and the Mafia boss winds up puncturing a pipe that spews steam. His knife is stuck in the pipe, which allows the Yakuza boss to grab the Mafia boss without fear of getting stabbed. However, just as the Yakuza boss is about to stab him with the Sai, the Mafia boss pulls out his Icepick as a last resort and stabs the Yakua boss in his arm, causing him to drop one of his Sai. The Mafia boss then grabs the Yakuza boss by his hair and slams his head into the punctured pipe, burning his face. He then brings the Yakuza boss close and pulls his head to the side, exposing his neck. The Mafia boss slowly drives the Icepick into the Yakuza boss's neck. He pulls out the Icepick and watches the Yakuza boss slump to the ground. The Mafia boss throws away his Icepick and pulls out a cigar. He lights it and begins to smoke it in celebration before walking away. Expert's Opinion After the battle, the experts gave their opinions. While the Yakuza was trained in martial arts and were more disciplined because of it, they credited the Mafia's victory to the simplicity of their weapons. For example, while nunchucks can be used to distract an enemy with its elaborate display, the baseball bat was quicker to use and had more strength and killing potential. Trivia *More information about the Yakuza: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFH6q1hJMfo *Disgraced samurai warriors (Rōnin) and lower class subjects formed the first underground groups of feudal Japan, which would evolve into today´s Yakuza. Outlawed Ninja clans also became involved in criminal undergrounds. *Japanese sword fighting and similar martial arts were temporarily outlawed after World War II during US occupation of Japan, which allowed the Yakuza to train their gangsters in such arts. *All Yakuza members of the Yamaguchi-gumi gang must agree to remove their ties with their biological family, to confirm their loyalty to the group. *Nintendo was originally a playing card company before becoming a videogame titan. The Yakuza was one of Nintendo's biggest customers as the cards were perfect for underground gambling. *Japanese criminals historically were tattooed as a method of identifying the criminal. This was perhaps the origins of the Yakuza's tattoo culture. *Yubitsume (Finger Shortening) is a punishment not only for Yakuza members but also for those in dept to the Yakuza (like those with gambling dept). There are more severe forms of amputation as well; depending on the crime committed against the Yakuza. A Yakuza would not eventually have all his fingers removed for multiple felonies against the gang; at that point, the gang would simply execute him. *The Yakuza profited from the Fukushima nuclear disaster. They provided laborers to the Japanese Ministry of Environment to clean up the dangerous contaminated area. Most of these laborers were homeless or debtors who were desperate for money. 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